Preparation

For aioli:

Whisk vinegar, honey, and saffron threads in heavy small saucepan over medium-high heat. Bring to boil. Remove from heat. Cool completely. Mix mayonnaise and garlic in medium bowl to blend. Mix in cooled vinegar mixture. Season aioli to taste with salt and pepper. (Can be made 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate.)

I halved the recipe,
substituted 18 yr.
balsamic vinegar
(out of red wine)
and 1/2 sour cream,
1/2 real mayo.
Loved the result - a
winner. Next time,
I will make the full
recipe to have
leftovers on hand
for other dishes.

This was good, but not great. I brought it to an
experimental dinner party. There was a lot of aioli
left over--I think it was a little too sweet and
heavy for the asparagus. Next time I will try half
yogurt/half mayo.

Exellent! I used greek yogurt instead of mayonnaise, (cuz it was in my fridge) which may have lost a bit of flavor but it was still fantastic. You can really taste the saffron It went fantastically well with the asparagus.

I read the reports where people say the asparagus would be better on its own and I don't understand it! My wife and I thoroughly enjoyed this and felt it worked well with the grilled chicken I prepared. Plain grilled asparagus needs no recipe and is always delicious - but this is a special treat to mix it up when in the middle of asparagus season! I'd like to pair this witha fish next time...

Forget the asparagus-you could serve the
aioli on bread and this would be fabulous-
we used the sauce on rotisseried
chicken as well as the asparagus and it
was all good. Even better since I used
garlic from my garden-spicy and good.
A definite winner.

Simple, quick and yummy. Everytime I have made this, it disappears quickly. For a fast supper I served this with flank steak (lime juice, garlic and salt rubbed in just before grilling) sliced thinly and crusty sourdough bread. From arrival at home to sit down, 30 minutes tops. PERFECT summer meal.

The grilled asparagus was wonderful. However, I would refer to the Saffron Orange Aioli recipe (featured on this website) to replace this one which uses mayonaise. Make the aioli one day prior to allow the saffron to peak in flavour.

This is a delicious dish and one that I will make again (The colors also make a beautiful presentation). The combination of the grilled flavor and the aioli is crisp and complex. Make the aioli the day before and, of course, use good quality saffron.
It does yield a lot of aioli, but enjoy the indulgence.

I served this with several other yummy recipes at a buffet and this one went first. It is as great as everyone says it is, (and yes, you will have WAY too much aioli for the asparagus, but it does taste great with many other things). The saffron makes the sauce. I buy it at BJs Wholesale Club for pennies.

Grilled the asparagus on the George Foreman quickly and then drizzled just a little of the sauce on. It is very strong and on its own I didn't like it very much. With the asparagus though it tastes great. Will halve the sauce recipe next time.

Terrific recipe for time-starved cooks! I served this with Chimichurri steaks and balsamic roasted potatoes and it was a huge hit! The aioli can be made a day ahead, and the asparagus grilled with the meat for a quick and elegant dinner.

I made this recipie and it was very good. My husband (and even my 2 year old!) both asked for seconds. Personally, I thought I would cut down the amount of mayonnaise...in other words make the proportion of red wine vinegar and honey more equal to that of the mayo. Also, I had tons of the sauce left...I only had 1.3 lbs of the asparagus (a little less than the recipe calls for)...is the asparagus supposed to be swimming in the sauce? Again, I think if I make the proportions more equal and cut down the amounts used, I might've enjoyed it even more. Will definitely give it another try, though. Anyone have any thoughts on my comments?